Since my last post, its been just a little crazy. My oldest son had an emergency appendectomy, then the basement of our old house in Ohio (which is still for sale) flooded when the sump pump outlet failed, and then we had a series of storms here in Chicago. It seemed every week had its surprise crisis, to the point my youth director thought I should change my name to Job.
If you haven’t read the book out of the bible, Job is the victim of a bet between God and Satan. Satan says that if he bashes Job long enough, Job will reject God. God takes up the bet and before long, Job’s wife, sons, daughters, home, and health are all destroyed. He has these idiotic friend who sit with him, telling him that its all Job’s fault, he did something to tick off God and is being punished.
Job rejects their advice, that he hasn’t done anything wrong. While we have the old saying “Patient as Job”, Job is not patient. He spends his time telling his friends their wrong and asking God wtf. Finally God shows us, announces that he is going to test Job and if he can answer God’s questions, he will get an answer. Job apologizes for bothering the Almighty, that he can’t grasp all that is happening, and God ends up blessing him more than he ever was before.
You read Job and feel better for a bit. You don’t have it as bad as others, including Job, but its a little creepy to think of God playing a game with the devil and you are the pawn.
I’m feeling better and so’s my son. The basement isn’t so bad, even if Allstate doesn’t cover water damage under landlord insurance. No one was hurt and people to south in Findlay have it much worse. We had friends take care of the trashed carpet and I’ll have to go out soon but its not as bad as it could be.
I might even get a podcast in this week.
by the way, I did decide to re – name one of my fantasy football teams this year.
The Sons of Job.
Here’s to better times
I think the Book of Job is one of the best books in the Bible — except for the “frame story.” It works well in the realm of myth, but — you’re right — it is creepy to have God allowing havoc to be wreaked on someone and his family on what is basically a _dare_.
And the closing? With God blessing him more than he ever was before? I’m sorry, but that doesn’t happen. I’d challenge anyone to take a tally among Katrina survivors to see how many are blessed quite like Job was. An astonishing number end up with a faith STRENGTHENED more than before. But blessed more than before – there is something insulting in that I feel.
But shy of that — the meaty bit — the part in the middle? Incredibly moving.
Good luck to you, Tom.
m
Job is always a frightening book to read because you always feel like you could be next. However, I think your conclusion that it could be worse may be one of God’s points. If I try to imagine the most one person could suffer, it would look just like Job. If I understand it correctly, Job may have been a fictional story. It does seem dramatic the way everything happens to Job at once. I heard a sermon once about how such “comedic timing” is more common than you might think. My wife and I had an insane month of similar timing which involved a Lazarus-type resurrection, a wedding and a funeral. However dramatic our life had gotten, like yours, it hardly compares to Job’s. I suspect no one could suffer more so if we find ourselves in the worst imaginable situation, we always have a fellow sufferer.
In response to Mark’s comment about Katrina victims and folks not having more blessings than before, I’d say the story isn’t over yet. I’m not sure we know how long it took for God to restore Job’s blessings but I suspect it wasn’t as quick as when He took them away. God has a funny way of stretching our faith to the point of despondancy before such restoration.
actually someone can suffer as much as job, I believe that story is true, because the same thing that happened to job, is happening to me. My family disowned me, my mom,grandparents,aunts,uncles,sister and brother, and my dad has cancer, I have bills I have to pay and I just lost my job today, after working there for two and half years, so yeah it can happen, it did happen to me…
Paul, God is faithful.